In the framework of World Tourism Day, we emphasise the relevance of the Tourist Experience in the recovery of the airline industry through automation and Artificial Intelligence.
Since the global crisis caused by the now almost forgotten COVID-19 pandemic, the world and the market have undergone radical changes in many sectors, and the travel industry (in particular the airlines industry) has since experienced significant challenges to which it has been forced to adapt at unprecedented speed. In this new era, it is critical to understand that investment in the Customer Experience (CX) discipline is the key to seizing the opportunity to win back repeat travellers by improving their experience and providing them with a memorable service.
Analysing the opportunity, assessing the challenges and planning the strategy
Investing in improving the tourist experience in the airline industry presents a great opportunity to differentiate in a highly competitive market. With 38% of business passengers saying they are dissatisfied with airlines, the industry landscape has become highly volatile, with consumers increasingly willing to switch airlines at a moment’s notice. In this context, companies that have invested in CX during times of crisis have not only retained their customers, but also attracted new travellers. To achieve this goal, it is essential to have advanced platforms that enable, through Artificial Intelligence (AI)-based technologies, comprehensive, prioritised, predictive and prescriptive measurement of tourist experience and customer sentiment.
We present, on the occasion of World Tourism Day this 27th September, some solutions that address the four major challenges facing airlines in this new era.
Data integration: The integration of structured and unstructured data from multiple sources into a centralised analytical repository is imperative. This includes, for example, complaint or feedback databases on Tripadvisor, along with the launch of surveys in critical areas such as lounges or customer service, among others.
Real-time analysis of customer feedback: To identify pain points and issues immediately, customer listening platforms such as sandsiv+ are able to create sentiment and issue ranking models aligned to the Customer Journey. These models enable real-time analysis that is cross-referenced with business KPIs and attributes, such as Net Promoter Score (NPS) or financial data. This is achieved through an easy-to-use survey creation interface and the ability to integrate with multiple channels.
Multilingualism: Customer feedback is collected in multiple languages. Rating models deployed in different languages enable understanding and action around the world, and feedback is transmitted live to front-line employees to maximise their insight into the customer to resolve customer issues in a timely manner.
Competitor benchmarking: The integration of customer feedback and competitor analysis allows airlines to compare their performance at touchpoints and journey stages with their competitors, identifying key differentiators that will make a difference to the experience they offer their travellers.
The ideal traveller’s journey
Thus, the journey of the new ‘air’ traveller must be an exceptional and personalised experience:
From the moment of engagement and booking, travellers must experience personalised and efficient service. Experience surveys, such as in-flight meal evaluations, allow customers to share their feedback in a simple way, providing airlines with valuable information to improve their service.
Once at the airport, the experience should be seamless and stress-free. Some initiatives could be for lounges to offer comfort and options that meet the needs of all passengers, including, for example, vegetarian options. In addition, baggage information should be clearly addressed with detailed and transparent fees.
During the flight, comfort and entertainment are key, providing passengers with a differential and high-value service.
Giada Longo, Digital Marketing Specialist at SANDSIV says: “Investing in real-time feedback solutions is an essential step towards excellence in today’s competitive airline market. Thanks to their integration, airlines will be able to clearly understand passenger needs at every touch point through the capture of feedback from multiple sources and the application of sentiment analysis on multi-channel and multi-lingual data. Only then will it be possible for the industry to retain customers and build customer loyalty in this new era”.
